


Neo Scream & Mad Whistle

by HamHamHeaven



Category: BORN (Band), Jrock, Royz
Genre: Haunting, Horror, Infidelity, M/M, Murder, Non-Explicit Sex, Non-Graphic Violence, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-19
Updated: 2019-03-19
Packaged: 2019-11-24 08:52:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18163193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HamHamHeaven/pseuds/HamHamHeaven
Summary: An ancient inn tucked into the forest was not the sort of vacation Subaru was hoping for.  Especially once he learns that the inn is haunted.





	Neo Scream & Mad Whistle

**Author's Note:**

> My March fill for the DW VKYaoi community challenge, using moodboard #6 [Classic Horror](https://vkyaoi.tumblr.com/private/179532469160/tumblr_phbyxeF01I1x3atgk) and quote #10 the GazettE, "Ominious":  
> The ominous surrounds a constant change  
> The broken darkness defeats me.

_What’s that?  You’ll have to speak slower; the connection is terrible.  Dead!  Who’s dead?  How many?!  Please try to remain calm.  Yes, we will send someone to investigate right away.  Please leave everything untouched until the detective arrives._

 

 

“What do you think!”

Subaru stood next to the taxi, examining his surroundings and trying to think of something positive to say to hide his lack of enthusiasm.

_This place looks like something out of a period drama_ , he thought as he eyed the time-stained wood and faded tiles of the sprawling inn.  _Or a horror film_.

“We… will definitely get lots of fresh air here.”

“You said that’s what you wanted,” Ryoga reminded him cheerfully.

Subaru sighed.

“Yes, I did say that, didn’t I?”

When Subaru had mentioned hoping for some sea air during their vacation, he’d been hinting at one of the tropical Bonin Islands, or maybe Okinawa Prefecture.  An ancient inn tucked into the forest overlooking some ramshackle fishing village on a tiny cove was _not_ what he’d had in mind.  And he really couldn’t fathom why Ryoga had picked this place.  Neither of them was exactly a nature-lover.  What did he think they were going to _do_ for a whole week?

“I’m going to guess they don’t have Wi-Fi here,” he speculated.

“Nope.  Just think of it, Baby: an entire week with a ready-made excuse for not answering your agent’s emails.  No harassing calls or texts interrupting your relaxation.  Nothing to do but sip tea, soak in the hot springs, and work on that new manga you keep claiming you need to find time for.”

Subaru’s cheeks went pink with shame as his boyfriend grinned over at him.  Ryoga had actually put some thought into their vacation after all, and here Subaru was mentally complaining about it.

“Won’t you be bored?”

Ryoga grabbed their bags with an easy shrug and led the way up the path toward the entrance.

“Nah, I’ll find something to do.  You know me.”

“Yes, I know you,” Subaru agreed with a wry smile.  “That’s why I’m worried about you getting into trouble.”

“We’re in the middle of the woods, Baru.  What trouble could I get into?”

Subaru could imagine all sorts of things that high-spirited Ryoga might do to start trouble, but he wasn’t about to provide a list of ideas.  Ryoga apparently took the lack of response as his having won the argument, the way he strutted along.  There was a time that Subaru had thought that cockiness extremely attractive.  Lately, though, he’d found himself becoming more and more irritated with it.

 

Subaru’s misgivings about the facility lessened significantly as they crossed the threshold and entered the space that had been set up as a reception area.  Though obviously old, the building was kept fresh and tidy.  The space was open and well lit; there were no cobwebs clinging to the corners, and none of the musty stench Subaru associated with antiquated places. 

_After all, it’s not like they’ve had the place boarded up,_ he mused.  _Wouldn’t get many customers that way._

Sakazaki-san, the middle-aged woman at the reception desk confirming their reservation, fit much better with his preconceptions.  She wore a striped kimono in an unflattering shade of mustard yellow, and though she welcomed them politely, she had a hard voice with clipped manner of delivery.  She was, Subaru decided, the sort of woman who valued efficiency and tolerated no nonsense. 

_Tyrannical._

None of the guest rooms had keys, she informed them as she led them along the engawa, but the few staff members were all extremely trust-worthy individuals – people who had been working at the inn for decades that she could vouch for personally.  Additionally, the only other lodger at the moment was a grandson of the woman employed as the cook.  A young man about their own age.

“Oh it’s fine,” Ryoga remarked indifferently.  “We didn’t bring anything that anyone would want to steal anyhow.”

Subaru was rather surprised by his boyfriend’s apathy, since Ryoga was typically very particular about his belongings.  Sakazaki-san evidently didn’t appreciate his joking manner either because she slid open the door to their room with a rather forceful snap. 

It was on the smaller side with just enough space for two futons and a small table with a lamp.  Still like everything else, it was meticulously clean.  Being isolated on one corner of the building meant they’d have more than enough privacy.  As an added bonus, there was nice view of a wild tangle of autumn-painted garden complete with gentle sea breeze that had Subaru’s fingers tingling to draw.

“If you leave your things here, I’ll show you the bathing facilities.”

She gestured toward the woods, and for the first time since they arrived, Ryoga seemed hesitant.

“The bathing facility isn’t attached?”

“There are two washrooms off the main entrance, but the shower facilities are connected to the onsen.  Adding that sort of plumbing to the inn itself would have been prohibitively expensive.”

While leading the way, Sakazaki-san began a short lecture on the history of the property, which neither of the young men found very interesting: Merchant So-And-So back in the Days of Yore building his pretty young bride a safe haven in this idyllic landscape.

_I swear she stole this from the plot of that drama that was on television a few years back,_ thought Subaru.  _Now what was it called?_

Ryoga caught Subaru’s attention and dramatically rolled his eyes, causing his boyfriend to turn away quickly to hide his giggling.  As he did, he noticed that the path ahead split to the right, a set of stone steps winding downward to disappear among the trees. 

“What’s down there?” he pointed.

Sakazaki-san’s face took on an even dourer expression.

“Mischief,” she sniffed disdainfully.  “If you have any sense, you’ll keep away from that path.”

“Why?  What’s wrong with it?”

“Where does it go?” Ryoga chorused, eyes sparkling with interest.

“A cave leading to abandoned secondary entrance to the cellars, then further down to the sea.”

That all sounded perfectly ordinary.  If it was just an old, unmaintained cellar, why hadn’t she simply said it was a safety risk?  Something about her reaction gave Subaru an uneasy feeling, and he’d have liked to forget about the discussion as quickly as possible.  Ryoga had other ideas; he asked a hundred different questions about the stairway and cellars, but try as he might, usually-persuasive Ryoga couldn’t get her to say another word beyond the repeated admonition that they stay away.

 

A solitary form stood in the shadows of the gate, seemingly awaiting them, when they returned to the main building a short while later.  Something about its presence felt ominous, and despite the warmth of the autumn sun shining down on them, Subaru shivered.  As they drew nearer, the shape solidified into the figure of a handsome man a few years older than Ryoga.  He had chin-length hair lightened to a shiny chestnut brown and eyes so dark they were nearly black.

“Our other guest,” Sakazaki-san introduced curtly.  “This is Ray-kun, Ito-san’s grandson.  Ray-kun, these are Ryoga-san and Subaru-san.”

Everyone bowed to one another and murmured:

“Nice to meet you."

“Dinner will be served at 7:30.  Please be punctual.”

Without a backward glance, Sakazaki-san strode off.  Once she was out of sight, the young man called Ray seemed to relax.  His posture became more nonchalant, and he gave Ryoga a long, slow inspection, licking his lips in lewd appreciation.

“Lucky me.  My visit just got a lot more interesting.”

His voice was low and gruff when he spoke informally.  It made Subaru’s stomach squirm oddly, and he must have made some involuntary noise or movement, because Ray turns his attention to the smaller man, and whatever he saw made him smirk.

“A _lot_ more interesting.

Subaru could feel his face flush when the stranger winked at him.

“See you boys for dinner.”

Ray swaggered off, and Subaru noted with some annoyance how Ryoga stared at Ray’s ass as he went.  Okay, so it _was_ a nice ass, he grudgingly allowed, but that didn’t excuse ogling while your boyfriend stood right beside you.

“Wipe the drool from your chin,” he chastised, “And let’s go unpack.”

 

As commanded, Subaru and Ryoga arrived for the evening meal at 7:30 sharp.  The food was hearty and delicious, but between Sakazaki-san’s stern schoolmistress glares from the head of the table and the outright flirting going on between Ray and Ryoga, Subaru found he didn’t have much appetite.  Neither of the other men said anything improper, of course.  They discussed perfectly normal topics like their professions and hobbies.  Yet more than once Subaru thought he caught Ray sending heated glances Ryoga’s way.  And the way they seemed to talk over Subaru, as if he wasn’t even there, stung far worse than he would have expected.

It might have been only his imagination, but Subaru could have sworn he saw Ray’s jaw clench and his eyes narrow every time Ryoga mentioned Subaru’s name.  Whenever Ryoga’s attention turned even briefly to the mangaka or if Subaru would casually touch his lover’s arm.  He couldn’t make any sense of it; there was no reason whatsoever for Ray to feel possessive of Ryoga.  They were complete strangers, after all.  So he dismissed the idea as his a projection of his own jealousies.

The longer the meal progressed, the heavier the atmosphere became with an uneasy sexual tension until Subaru was quite relieved to excuse himself and escape out into the chilly evening air.  He grabbed a cushion and an extra blanket and settled himself on the engawa just outside their room, waiting for his peculiar mood to dissipate.  To his surprise, Ryoga joined him a few minutes later, flopping down at his side and using Subaru as a makeshift pillow.  He seemed completely oblivious to his boyfriend’s agitation.

“Man, I ate like a pig,” he rubbed his stomach.  “Ito-san sure can cook.”

Subaru hummed in agreement and casually brushed a few strands of Ryoga’s hair back from his eyes.

_Humans look so odd upside down,_ he found himself thinking.  _We don’t really look human at all from this angle.  I wonder if he’d hold still long enough to let me sketch him._

“Whatcha thinkin’, Baru?” Ryoga teased mischievously.

Subaru pulled the blanket higher around his shoulders to hide his flushed cheeks.

“Sketching,” he prevaricated.  “Why?  What are you thinking about?”

“I’m trying to work out what’s so forbidden about that path.”

“Are you _still_ thinking about that?” his boyfriend sighed wearily.

He had hoped that the mysterious stone staircase wouldn’t be mentioned again.

“You aren’t?” Ryoga sat up in a rush and grabbed Subaru by the shoulder, a bizarre light in his expression.  “It looked so perfectly normal to me.  Aren’t you the least bit interested in why it’s _so_ important that we stay away?”

“It’s haunted.”

Two heads whirled around to stare at Ray who had come up behind them silently.

“You don’t mind if I join you, do you?”

Subaru would have liked to tell the intruder that yes, in fact, he _did_ mind very much, but Ray didn’t await permission.  He simply dropped into a careless crouch at the base of the nearest pillar and pulled a case of cigarettes out of his jacket pocket.  Subaru wrinkled his nose in disapproval, yet because they were technically outdoors, he kept his mouth shut.

“Haunted, you say!  Who told you that?”

The keenness was as plain on Ryoga’s face as the distaste was on Subaru’s.

“I’ve been visiting this place during summer holiday since I was a kid, remember.  _Everyone_ says it’s haunted, though precious few will say why.  ‘Bad for business’.”

“You know, though, don’t you?” demanded Ryoga.

Ray grinned.

“Sure do.”

“What’ll it cost me to find out?”

Ray gave Ryoga a pointed once-over, then did the same to Subaru, who tried to accept the scrutiny without concealing himself behind his boyfriend or showing any signs of discomfort.

“I suppose there’s nothing else to do around here in the evening except tell ghost stories,” Ray allowed after a few seconds.  “Did Sakazaki-san give you the standard history lesson?”

“Some boring chronicle about a merchant and his bride,” Ryoga waved his hand dismissively.  “Nothing about _haunting_.”

Ray gave a derisive snort.

“Yeah, well, that merchant, Yoshida, is the one who started it all.  See, he supposedly committed murder on those stairs.” 

Ray paused for dramatic effect; his audience didn’t disappoint.  Subaru’s hands flew to his mouth to stifle a gasp, while Ryoga eagerly leaned closer.

“Legend has it that ‘pretty bride’ of his actually hated living here.  Can’t blame her; even back then there must have been nothing to do.  Anyway, either out of revenge for him dragging her to this gods-forsaken place or just to ward off the boredom, she started an affair with Yoshida’s steward.  The only place on the property with locks was the cellar he used to store trade goods, so that’s where they met.  Didn’t matter whether the husband was home or not, because the steward could slip in and out through the cave using his spare key.  But then she gave birth to a set of twins, and Yoshida started to get suspicious.  The older the boys got, the more convinced he became that the younger son wasn’t his.  Claimed the kid didn’t look anything like him.”

“I don’t look anything like my father,” interrupted Subaru.

“Neither do I for that matter,” Ray shrugged, “But he became fixated on the idea.  He started roaming the corridors at night, searching the house for hidden rooms or trap doors he could use as so-called proof of his wife’s cheating.  The deeper his obsession, the more worried the wife became that Yoshida would eventually find out the truth, and the more her fear showed, the more certain he became in his own madness that he was right.

“He eventually discovered their rendezvous site by overhearing one of the servants ask the steward for his spare cellar key.  Even if nothing _had_ been going on between them that would have been damning evidence to Yoshida.  He set a trap for them: sending a forged note to the steward that the wife needed to meet him immediately ‘in their usual spot’.  The steward hurried off, and Yoshida followed him.  Snuck up behind him on the stairs and strangled the fellow.  Once the poor idiot was dead, Yoshida dragged the corpse down into the cave, shoved it into the cellar.  Then he played the same trick on his wife with the urgent message to meet.  He let her rush off to the cellar on some pretext, locked her in, and sat near the door waiting to hear her reaction.  Legend says Yoshida let her scream herself to death while he sat in house and laughed.” 

“Didn’t anyone try to help her?!” whispered Subaru in horror.

“Obviously not.  Maybe he’d already sent the servants away.  Maybe nobody wanted to be his next victim.  Maybe they all hated her and thought the bitch deserved it.  Who knows.”

“And he was he never arrested and tried for his crimes?”

“You’re thinking about this too seriously, Baby,” chided Ryoga lightly.  “People aren’t arrested in ghost stories.  Where’s the fun in that?  What’s a ghost got to moan about if justice has been carried out?”

Subaru frowned at his boyfriend’s callousness.

The full moon slowly rose in the sky, casting eerie, ever-moving shadows through the gnarled trunks of the trees as the wind rustled the few leaves still stubbornly clinging to the boughs.  The garden, which had been so beautiful in sunlight, became menacing and ominous.  Subaru trembled despite the blanket and the thick woollen cardigan he wore and wished they could go back inside already.

But Ray wasn’t finished with his story.

“No, Yoshida was never arrested.  Certifiably nuts, though.  He married again – several times, as a matter of fact.  All rich, beautiful young women from influential families far enough away that they hadn’t heard about his homicidal tendencies.  They found out soon enough.  His delusion about secret hiding places and assignations continued, and he kept them all under house arrest practically, not letting them interact with any men but himself.  Funny thing is, each new wife died under mysterious circumstances.  One slipped down those same stone stairs and broke her neck.  One choked on a boiled quail egg.  One was thrown from her horse.  The servant with her at the time swore she caught a glimpse of a woman in white through the trees just before the horse bolted.  Folks in the village seemed to think the ‘accidents’ were the first wife and her lover looking for revenge.”

“B-but horses spook over anything, right?” Subaru tried to reason.  “Or nothing at all.  That doesn’t mean it was a ghost.  Besides, people think they see all sorts of things when they’re frightened.”

He didn’t mention that at that very moment he could feel prickling along his neck telling him that _he_ was being watched by something or someone.

“Don’t spoil the story by being practical, Baru!”

Ryoga ruffled Subaru’s hair playfully, earing himself a shove.

“Wait.  What happened to the kids?” Ryoga suddenly remembered.  “Did they get locked in the cellars too?”

Once again, Ray grinned: a wolfish, unsettling grin.

“That’s where the second set of murders comes in.  Yoshida accepted the older boy Emon as his heir, but flatly refused to acknowledge the younger Itsuo.  Once the rumours started flying about what Yoshida had done to their mother, one of the servants managed to sneak Itsuo out of the house and raised him along with her own kids.  But he grew up with a cruel streak and a nasty temper.  Before long everyone in the village began to suspect that if only one of the two boys had Yoshida blood, it was the younger.

“When old Yoshida died, Itsuo got it into his head that if his older brother were gotten out of the picture, _he_ could claim the full estate as sole surviving heir.  So he asked his brother to meet him, claiming he wanted to set up a memorial to their mother now that their father was gone.  I’m sure you can figure out what happened next.  He suggested something down near the beach.  ‘Let’s take the stairs; it’s faster’.  One hefty shove and Emon plunges to his death, leaving evil twin to claim all the family wealth, including the dowries brought by the subsequent marriages. 

“He ended up marrying his adopted sister, and the family genealogy since then is basically a laundry list of every homicidal, sociopathic tendency you could think of.  There was the kid who ‘unintentionally’ killed his friend with a stray arrow after he was bested in a foot race.  The girl who threw some sort of acid into the face of her cousin when she found out the man she liked was interested in the cousin not her.  Didn’t kill the rival, but left her burned and horribly disfigured.  Then there was the guy who put poison down the well of one of his neighbours because the family wouldn’t sell him their land.”

“What about all the other people and animals who used the well?” Subaru demanded.

“I doubt that sort of person cares about collateral damage.”

Subaru’s stomach churned in revulsion.

“I don’t think I want to stay here anymore.”

“We can’t exactly pack up and leave in the middle of the night, Baby.  Besides, we’re not sleeping in the cellars or out on the stone stairs, so it’s fine.”

Subaru gave his boyfriend a dubious look, but left off the discussion, knowing he would never convince Ryoga to take stories about murder and ghosts seriously.  Indeed, the older man continued to press Ray for details of other misdeeds and local legends, until Subaru couldn’t stand it any longer and excused himself to go brush his teeth.

 

That night, Subaru tossed and turned on his futon, starting at every unfamiliar sound.  The wind buffeted the trees in the courtyard causing them to creek and groan as if in pain.  Down toward the water, the high squeak of a bat would occasionally echo off the rocks.  Somewhere further within the inn, he heard the soft slide of fusuma opening and closing, opening and closing, and the muted padding of tabi-covered feet across tatami.  He tried to reassure himself that it was nothing: probably just Ray wandering from room to room, searching for a cure to insomnia.  Or else just Subaru’s imagination.

It _definitely_ wasn’t the ghost of an obsessed murderer searching the house for the hiding place of his wife’s lover and her shrieks echoing from the cellar.

Subaru had never really been prone to an over-active imagination, but he’d also never attempted to sleep in an allegedly haunted inn after being subjected to several hours of stories of murder.

_Didn’t bother Ryoga,_ he noticed resentfully.

Ryoga was sprawled on his back, snoring softly, obviously unaffected.  Subaru frowned and aimed a weak kick at Ryoga’s shin.

No reaction.

How could anyone be so calm and indifferent after the sorts of horrors Ray had described?  Ryoga had treated it all like a joke.  As if it were fictitious and had nothing to do with real people’s lives being ruined. 

Furthermore, what sort of madman could do that to another human… out of nothing more than jealousy?  Unbidden, the memory Ray’s lecherous face as he watched Ryoga over the dinner table popped into Subaru’s mind, sending a red-hot spike of anger through him.  Fine.  So perhaps he understood why a man might hate someone who tried to take what was _his_.  But to commit murder for it?  No.  That Subaru could _never_ understand.

He rolled over on his side and stared pensively at Ryoga’s slumbering form.

_Anyway, he’d never betray me like that._

 

Subaru finally drifted off into a fitful doze as the first rays of dawn crept over the horizon, and when he woke a few short hours later, he found Ryoga’s futon empty.  Bleary-eyed, Subaru reluctantly dragged himself from the bedding and shuffled toward the kitchen, hoping Sakazaki-san wouldn’t deny him breakfast for his tardiness.  Fortunately, Ray’s grandmother was the only one in the kitchen, and to Subaru’s relief she simply poured him some strong black tea and patted his shoulder with a bony hand.

The meal she served was every bit as delicious as the dinner he’d been unable to stomach the previous evening, and though he was still quite tired, the good food made him feel more cheerful.

“Did I at least beat Ray-san to breakfast?” he asked as he sipped the last of his tea.  “He seems like he’d be a late riser.”

“Boys these days.  Usually I can’t rouse him before noon,” Ito-san chortled.  “But this morning he was up with the chickens.  He’s taken Ryoga-san for a walk to the shrine.”

Suspiciousness flared within Subaru’s chest.  When they’d been unpacking, he’d made Ryoga promise to go to the shrine with _him_!  He shoved the emotion away as quickly as he could, trying to remain calm and rational.  There was no reason Ryoga couldn’t go to the shrine twice.  And really, it was thoughtful of his boyfriend to let Subaru catch up on his rest rather than waking him and dragging him along. 

As for Ray… well, he was just… looking for something to do, someone to talk to.  Hadn’t he said the previous evening how dull he found life in the country?

_Then maybe he should have stayed in the city_ , Subaru’s subconscious grumbled.

 

After breakfast, Subaru had a quick shower, then settled in the garden to story board and do a few sketches for his new manga.  The longer he sat, the more distracted he felt, that irrational fear of being _watched_ returning in full-force.  Eventually he gave up and wandered back through the inn in search of a distraction.  He’d half-expected Ryoga and Ray to have returned for lunch, and when that didn’t happen, his restlessness grew.

Sakazaki-san pointedly suggested that perhaps he would benefit from a brisk walk to the village to burn some of his excess energy.  A subtle “get out of my hair” sort of remark.  Subaru apologized for annoying her and asked if she could provide directions to the village so that he could buy some chewing gum.

Subaru wandered along the footpath trying to forget his frustrations and let the autumn sunshine and playful gusts of wind clear his head.  Her instructions had been to follow the trail straight along to the stone fence that lined the main road, but he soon discovered that “straight” was quite an exaggeration.  It wasn’t like the hiking trails in the parks he was used to, where Nature had been cleared away to make straight, smooth walkways for people.  This path forced the hiker around Nature, twisting and turning over old tree roots, around craggy outcroppings of rock, between thorny shrubs.  Some places were rough with twigs and loose pebbles, others slick with mud or moss.

“I should’ve worn boots,” Subaru observed aloud.

Suddenly a thunderous bark filled the air as an enormous black dog came barrelling through the wood toward him.  Subaru gave a yelp of alarm and made an undignified scramble up onto a nearby tree stump.  The beast continued its angry snarling, hackles raised, but made no move to attack him.  Which was fortunate, because Subaru had no doubt that a creature of such massive size could have reached him easily on his perch.

Subaru quaked at the sight of its massive paws and yellowed fangs.

“Taro!”

Immediately, the dog seated itself on the ground.  A few seconds later, a weathered old man carrying a shovel appeared from among the trees.  The dog gave another loud bark, causing the man to swat at it with his hat.

“Quiet, Taro.  D’you want to wake the dead?”

Subaru’s face paled.

“Who’re you?” the man demanded.  “Funeral’s not ‘til tomorrow.”

‘F-funeral?!” Subaru squeaked.

“Aye, funeral.  What other cause has a stranger to go skulkin’ about in a graveyard?”

Subaru’s eyes widened in alarm, gawking about to see whether the man was speaking the truth. Through the gaps in the trees, he could make out shapes that might indeed have been headstones.

“I had no idea this was a graveyard!” he gasped.  “The woman at the inn told me this path would lead me down to the village, but I guess I must’ve take a wrong turn somewhere.  I… d-didn’t mean to trespass!”

He bowed as low as he could while balanced so awkwardly on his stump.  The dog had stopped its growling, but that didn’t mean Subaru was safe. 

The man eyed Subaru suspiciously, taking in his blond hair, pierced ears, and ill-suited shoes.

“What’s a boy like you doing mixed up in a place like that?  Folk with any sense don’t stay at The Inn.”

Subaru bit his lip and glanced over his shoulder, despite knowing there shouldn’t be anyone around to hear.

“Actually, my… friend made the reservations without knowing the history of the place.  I find it kinda spooky and was hoping there might be somewhere else in the village with a room we could rent instead.  But like I said, I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere.”

The old man’s scowl deepened, but he plopped his hat back on his head with a grunt.

“Follow me.  I’ll show you a short-cut back to the road.”

Subaru didn’t particularly trust this stranger… or his dog, but the alternative was wandering alone and trusting to luck.  He hadn’t been having much luck lately.

“Well?  What’re you waiting for?”

Subaru pointed at the enormous black creature still blocking the way.

“Will it let me down?”

The man rolled his eyes and whistled through his teeth.  The dog’s ears perked, and it sauntered over to the man’s side, nosing at his hand for a pat.  When Subaru began to climb down, it turned and growled, but a sharp “hey!” settled it to merely glaring.

 

The cemetery custodian’s directions, though just as terse as Sakazaki-san’s, proved much easier to follow, and Subaru made it to the village in no time.  He stopped briefly at the drug store to keep up the pretence of wanting chewing gum, casually asking the cashier if she knew of anywhere in the village with a room to let. 

The cashier directed him across the street to the post office, where the post-mistress greeted his story with the same mistrustful attitude the old man had displayed.  Still, she seemed to understand why Subaru would want to make alternate arrangements as quickly as possible and quoted him what he thought was a very fair price.  It was tempting to accept immediately, but he decided in the end to discuss things with Ryoga first.  Subaru told her he would telephone later in the day once they had agreed on the plan.  She looked at him with a mixture of scepticism and pity that he found irrationally annoying, and he felt an inexplicable relief to be out of the building and back on the road toward the inn again.

Ryoga would concur, he was sure, and everything would be fine.

Rather than trying to find his way back via the forest path, Subaru chose to walk along the main road.  It would take longer perhaps, but he was fine with that if it meant avoiding the graveyard a second time.  He didn’t quite remember how long the taxi ride had been after they’d turned off the main thoroughfare, but he was certain there was enough daylight left that he wouldn’t be caught wandering in the dark.

The longer he walked, the more he began to feel that he was being followed.  Every few steps he would glance over his shoulder, convinced that _something_ had been there.  Nothing ever was.  Yet he was so sure he’d hear the shuffling of footsteps or heavy breathing; seen the flutter of movement out of the corner of his eye.  He quickened his pace, walking faster and faster until finally he gave into the fright fully and ran. 

By the time he arrived at the inn, he was practically hyperventilating, both from the running and the panic.  He clung to the support column as if it were some sort of safe haven, wheezing pitifully and waiting for the blurred spots to clear from his vision.  When he’d calmed down a little, he drew himself up on wobbly legs and tottered off toward his room, leaning heavily the wall for support as he went.

He found Ryoga there in the process of dressing, hair still damp from the shower he’d obviously just taken.

“You’re back!” Subaru exclaimed joyfully.  “Where have you been all day?”

“Ray took me down to the beach to show me some of his favourite fishing spots from when he was a kid.  We would’ve invited you, but I know how you feel about fish.”

Subaru bit his lower lip, happiness dissipating instantly.

“Oh.  Ito-san said you’d gone to the shrine this morning, so I wondered….”

Ryoga blanched, and Subaru realized, to his confusion, that he was being lied to.

“Uh… yeah, well… we… talked about it, but… then I remembered that you said you wanted to go, so we decided to do something else.”

“How many fish did you catch?”

Ryoga’s expression became even guiltier.

“I… didn’t keep count.  Anyway, where have _you_ been to get so dirty?”

He reached out and removed small leaf that had somehow gotten tangled in Subaru’s hair.  The mangaka ran his hands through his locks self-consciously, displacing another leaf and a few twigs.

“I walked through the wood down to the village,” he explained.  “Which reminds me – I found somewhere else we can stay.  The young lady who runs the post office has an empty room on the second floor, and she said she’d give us a good rate for the rest of the week.  We’d have to eat our meals at the local restaurant, but that wouldn’t be so bad.”

He expected his suggestion of relocating to the village to be met with some teasing and possibly a bit of grumbling about inconvenience.  He wasn’t at all prepared for anger.

“Why would you do such a stupid thing?  This is where our reservations are.  _This_ is where we’re staying.”

Subaru frowned.

“It wasn’t a stupid thing.  I don’t like it here.  This place is creepy, and I don’t want to stay.”

“Oh stop being a baby!” Ryoga mocked.  “A few local legends is no reason to get hysterical.”

“Who’s getting hysterical?  You’re the one who’s shouting.  I didn’t run off into the woods screaming gibberish, did I?  Or cover the entire room with salt?”

Yes, he _had_ gone running through the woods in a fit of terror, but Ryoga didn’t need to know that.

“No, you probably just got the entire village stirred up with your paranoia by looking for somewhere else to stay even though we have perfectly comfortable accommodations here.  Which I might add, are already paid for and non-refundable!”

“Oh I see.  So your non-refundable payment is more important than my peace of mind.”

“You’re welcome to buy your own ‘peace of mind’,” snapped Ryoga.  “Gods know, _you_ can afford it.  But I’m staying here.”

He grabbed up his jumper and stormed from the room before Subaru had the chance to respond.  That was just as well, because as upset as the younger man was, he was sure to have said something he regretted later. 

Perhaps his fear wasn’t rational, but it was _real_.  Why should he have to endure it for an entire week to avoid judgment of strangers he’d never see again and whose negative opinions meant nothing to him anyway!

_I bet he wouldn’t be so keen to stay if Ray weren’t here._

It was a spiteful thought.  Subaru hated himself for having it, and hated even more how it gnawed at him, absolutely refusing to die down.

 

Ryoga didn’t turn up for the evening meal that night, which meant that Subaru was forced to endure the strained silence sitting across from Ray.  In a way, Sakazaki-san’s presence was almost a blessing.  She provided an excuse for lack of conversation.  Subaru ate mechanically without particularly noticing what, and excused himself from the table as soon as he’d finished.

The moon rose; night crept in; the bedroom was still empty.  Subaru began to wonder just where Ryoga was hiding.  The inn was quite large, so he might have been anywhere.  Yet some sickening suspicion told Subaru that his lover was with Ray.  In Ray’s room.  In Ray’s company.  In Ray’s arms.

“No!” he snarled with a vehemence that startled him.

Subaru stared down at his clenched fists, appalled by his own loss of control.

“No, he repeated more calmly.  “I’m getting myself worked up over nothing.  It’s unfair for me to doubt him like this.  He’s just gone somewhere quiet to sulk for a while.  He’ll be back soon.”

He laid out both futons, straightening away the clothes Ryoga had left strewn about, and settled down to wait.  Everything was ten times louder, one-hundred times more frightening alone in the dark.  Once again, Subaru began to hear the opening and shutting of fusuma, along with the echoing footsteps and far-off screeching he still desperately wanted to believe was bats. 

There was also whispering, faint and sibilant, uttering words he couldn’t quite understand though he thought perhaps he ought to be able to.  Some forgotten dialect, perhaps.  Even without comprehension, the words filled him with dread.  No matter which direction he lay, they seemed to originate behind him – malevolence poured into his ears.

Louder footfall along the engawa caused him to freeze, heart beating wildly against his ribs as if to escape the danger with or without him.  The door slid open.  He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and held his breath as a shadow fell across the wall.  Then the door slid shut and someone heaved a familiar sigh as they flopped down onto the second futon.

_Ryoga!_

Subaru could have sobbed with relief.

His first instinct was to turn right over and throw himself into his boyfriend’s arms.  But then Ryoga’s words from earlier that day came back to him.  That would be acting hysterical, wouldn’t it?

He’d show Ryoga that he wasn’t giving in to paranoia.  Then maybe his lover would actually listen to his preferences and assent to finishing their vacation elsewhere.

Before it was too late.

 

For the second morning in a row, Subaru awoke by himself.  He lay under the covers for a long while, staring at the ceiling and pondering the previous day’s events.  He thought maybe he understood now why Ryoga had been so angry.  Vacation had been Ryoga’s idea for their six-month anniversary celebration; he’d insisted on paying for it all too, despite his income being significantly smaller than Subaru’s.  Subaru saw now that it was a matter of pride to Ryoga, to treat rather than be treated for once.  Maybe Subaru’s strong reaction to the inn had sounded like criticism: that he was blaming Ryoga for the inn being haunted or implying that Ryoga’s choice was a bad one just by wanting to move elsewhere.  Surely it was all just a misunderstanding that could be cleared up if they just discussed things calmly.

He washed and dressed himself hurriedly, then went to search for his lover.  A difficult task, since the place seemed to be entirely empty.  Subaru found a tray of food on the kitchen table and a small note from Sakazaki-san saying that she and Ito-san were attending the funeral of a neighbour and would return in time to serve a late lunch. 

The food had already gone tepid and the tea quite bitter from over-steeping.  Subaru stirred a spoonful of sugar into his cup of tea and gulped it down with a grimace, before eating as much of the rice and grilled fish as could be deemed not wasteful.  The remaining scraps he offered to the pair of cats who were lounging on the stoop.  They shied away from him immediately and refused to come near until he’d withdrawn all the way back into the kitchen.

_The graveyard guard dog didn’t like me either.  Maybe it’s something in the water around here that makes all of the animals distrustful.  Or is it something about me specifically that they dislike?_

The idea preoccupied him so much that he hadn’t particularly paid attention to where he was going and suddenly found himself at an unfamiliar corner of the passage.  It wasn’t clear what lay ahead, nor was he confident that he could find his way back to the kitchen if he attempted to retrace his steps, so he stood hesitantly for a few moments, trying to decide which way to go. 

He was about to give up and try making his way back when a soft murmur of voices caught his attention.  Not the disturbing whispers he’d heard in the night; simply the low rumble of conversation muffled by shoji.  The voices sounded male, which meant it was probably Ryoga and Ray.  Subaru hurried forward, following the sound, impatient for the opportunity to set things right with is boyfriend.

The voices did belong to Ryoga and Ray, just as he’s suspected.  Yet the scene he came across as he slid open the fusuma at the end of the passage was the very last that he’d ever expected to witness.  He stared, thunderstruck, unable to accept the sight that met his eyes.  Ray had Ryoga pressed against the wall, kissing him feverishly, hands shoved down his pants.  From where he stood. Subaru couldn’t see what he was doing but the pleasure-filled moans spilling from Ryoga’s lips left little doubt. 

Subaru’s entire body felt on fire with humiliation and unsatisfied lust.  He wanted to scream for them to stop, to rush right over and tear them apart.  He couldn’t get his body to move.  He stood, transfixed, powerlessly watching and listening to the sounds of pleasure he’d never been able to elicit himself.

“Oh gods, yes, just like that, Ray.  Fu-u-u, so good.”

Ray gave a low sinister chuckle as he pressed his lips to Ryoga’s throat.

“We’re close, Babe.  We’re so close I can taste it.  Just stick to the plan and keep your nerve, yeah?”

“Ray, please!”

Subaru stumbled back along the corridor, groping blindly at the walls as he went, his head reeling and stomach churning.  Hot tears poured down his cheeks, but his mind was in such turmoil he didn’t notice.

_Ryoga.  His_ Ryoga had betrayed him.  How could he!  After everything Subaru had done for him.  Everything he’d _given_ him.  He’d been some nothing little insurance salesman when they’d been introduced, struggling to make ends meet.  A pretty face with no real brain for business or work ethic sufficient to overcome the other obvious deficiencies.

_I should have seen then that he’d be the sort to spread his legs for anyone.  Ungrateful bitch.  Should have thrown her overboard and let her and the brats drown.  Get your hands off my wife!  
_

 

He tore through Ryoga’s belongings, shredding favourite pieces of clothing with his bare hands and hurling anything he couldn’t physically mangle out onto the stone walkway beyond the engawa.

How had he made it back to their room?  He didn’t know, and it didn’t matter.  His mind was a whirl of thoughts that were and were not his own.

A bottle of expensive cologne shattered against rafters; Ryoga’s mobile made a satisfying crunching noise beneath his foot as he stomped on it over and over again.  Subaru worked himself into a complete frenzy as he indiscriminately wreaked havoc, until at last, his body gave out on his, and he collapsed in a heap on the floor. 

Every muscle trembled from the adrenaline and the biting chill of the wind against his sweat-drenched skin.  He chest heaved from the exertion, each breath producing a sharp stabbing pain between his ribs.  His eyes refused to focus, and the world beneath him bucked and weaved like a mad beast.  Subaru clutched his roiling stomach in anguish as his mind tortured him by replaying the memory of what he’d seen and heard through the shoji.  Ryoga in Ray's clutches.  Ryoga panting and moaning.  Ryoga enfolded in the arms of a beautiful woman.

“Hey.  It’s ‘Subaru’, right?  Can I… talk to you for a minute?”

Subaru blinked owlishly up at the tall figure looming in the doorway and then scowled when he realized who it was.

He really couldn’t believe Ray’s audacity.  That he even dared to look Subaru in the eye after what he’d done was bad enough; to pretend he didn’t even remember the name of lover of the man he’d seduced was insulting beyond words.

“Look, I… think I might have accidentally crossed a line.”

_You think?!_ Subaru tried to shout, but his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth.

“See, I’d assumed with the way Ryoga was flirting with me that the two of you had an open sort of arrangement going on.  I mean that first night at dinner… you were _right_ there, and you didn’t say anything, so I figured….” 

He shifted from foot to foot awkwardly, fists shoved deep into his pockets. 

“But now it seems like… I guessed wrong?  I told him this was a mistake and that he needed to make things right with you.  He... kinda stormed off, but I think you could probably catch up to him if you tried.”

It was a convincing act, and Subaru might have fallen for it but for what he’d overheard.  He swallowed several times before he could get his throat to cooperate.

“So this is all a misunderstanding, is that what you’re saying?”

Even to his own ears, his voice sounded peculiarly distorted.  As if it wasn’t his voice at all.

“Are you sure this wasn’t part of _the plan_?”

To his credit, Ray schooled his features remarkably quickly.  Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t quite quickly enough.  Subaru had glimpsed his alarm, and it was all the proof he needed that he was being played.

“What were you hoping to do, Ray?”

Subarau struggled up onto his feet, staggering like a drunk.

“Drive me to a mental breakdown so I'd kill myself?” 

He lurched forward, and Ray took a step back, arms slowly raising in front of himself defensively.

“Hey now, calm down, Subaru.”

“Send me out into the forest on a wild goose chase.  Sneak up behind me, shove me down the stairs, and pretend a ghost did it?” 

Subaru advanced toward his adversary, fists clenched tightly... around the handle of a knife.

_Where did he find a knife?  Had it been among Ryoga’s things?_

“Steal what’s _mine_ right from under my nose and not have to pay the price!”

Ray made the mistake of glancing over his shoulder to see how near he was to the edge of the engawa.  A fatal mistake.  Subaru instantly sprang at the older man, stabbing and slashing ferociously.  Ray was bigger, stronger; he should have been able to use his superior size and strength to ward off the attack long enough to escape, but Subaru fought like a man possessed, drenching the scene with blood.

 

From the shadows, Ryoga watched the slaughter.  And waited.

 

It didn’t take long for Subaru to collapse once again, leaning heavily against Ray’s dead body.  His hands and lips had started to feel numb, and no matter how much he blinked, he couldn’t make his eyes focus.  The world had become a blur of crimson.

“You put on quite a show.  I’ve never seen you in such a temper.”

Warm, strong arms wound around his waist, and a pair of familiar lips pressed to the back of Subaru’s neck.  He tried to move away from the touch but found he couldn’t.

“How… could… you?”

“You’re the one who did it, Baby.”

Ryoga’s tone was light and playful.  Teasing.  It didn’t make any sense.

“You… s-s-slept with-h-h… him.”

“Aww, come on, Baru-tan, there’s no point in being jealous.  Especially not _now_ when we’re about to say goodbye _._ ”

“Huh?”

“You never should have told me about that new will you made.”

Realization struck even as Subaru’s limbs grew steadily colder and stiffer.

“The… t-t-tea.  Y-you…p-...”

“Poisoned it?” provided Ryoga helpfully.  “Yes, I did.  Ray was convinced the ghost story angle was the way to play this, and I’ll admit that watching you sprinting through the woods like the devil was after you, he _almost_ had me convinced.  But I should’ve known you wouldn’t break so easily.”

He kissed Subaru on the neck again.

“Poor Ray.  Ideas have never been his strong point.  Shame you killed him, though.   It’s so rare to find one that’s hot _and_ obedient; he could have been useful a while longer.”

Ryoga’s musings fell on unhearing ears.

“Ah well.  Only one thing left to do.”

Ryoga took a couple of deep breaths and threw his head back to give an earth-shattering scream.  Then he settled the body of his former boyfriend against himself and began to rock back and forth, willing himself into a state of meditation that would easily be misinterpreted as the catatonia he’d need to be in when the bodies were found.

**Author's Note:**

>  **1)** Fic title is a combination of two Born songs.  
>  **2)** I can't even tell you how much I hate this fic. The plot changed on me so many times I'm not even sure if it's coherent anymore. If not, I'm gonna chalk it up to "classic horror films did lots of things that didn't really make sense". I swear to the gods, I am _never_ letting Ryoga and Subaru near one another ever again. And poor Ray: he's been such a good sport about all of this while the other two have been fighting over who is getting offed and why.


End file.
